Those was a fantastic graphic novel. Gorey and well written, with a flashy and stylistic art style to go with it.

We follow Dr Carrie Reynolds, a renowned surgeon known for her impeccable mastery of the craft. Her daughter goes missing, only to be found catatonic and without her vocal chords.

I can see what the author was going for, but it didn't quite work for me. Maybe with a longer arc I would have been better invested, but as it stands it just fell a little flat. There isn't much time to get to know the characters or foreshadow much, so the ending ends up feeling abrupt rather than having a big emotional impact.

I liked the art, but did find the artisit shift at the halfway point somewhat jarring. As the content suggests, the images are very gory and packed with body horror. Maybe give this one a pass if things like that gross you out.

Thanks to NetGalley and Oni Press for giving me a chance to preview this book.

This body horror comic is perfect for Halloween season. It’s super creepy and has a beautifully grotesque art style. I enjoyed my time with it and I can’t wait to see how it continues in the next parts of the series.

It is viscerally gorey and while at a glance the people look like they’ve been turned into zombies it’s actually the work of a plastic surgeon turning people into monsters. I can’t imagine the horror of paying someone to make me feel and look beautiful in my own eyes and instead my body becomes completely butchered.

It’s a horrifying prospect and I very much enjoyed reading. It’s a scary prospect to be the one trying to stop this maniacal doctors and the fight is a gorey one. This action horror comic is a great read!

I’m a fan of Cullen Bunn, so I was instantly intrigued by this title. I went into it blind and was pleasantly surprised by the story. What starts out as a straightforward detective story (along with a somewhat unnecessary sex scene trope) turns into an eerie cult narrative that was engaging and fast paced. The ending fell a bit flat for me, realizing this wasn’t part of a series. I definitely could have used an extra issue or two to flesh out the ending more. That being said, the art style is absolutely incredible and was an interesting take on the trend of beauty industry horror. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this for review!

This graphic novel will definitely make you question getting any plastic surgery. The drawing and story were fine.

This was such an interesting and slightly disturbing story. I liked the art style used and found it really added to the presence of the story. The character design was done well and they all seemed so different in both art style and personality. I would continue on with the series as i really enjoyed this volume!

This was just ok. Very middle of the road, not-mad-I-read-it-but-not-all-that-glad-about-it-either. I’ve come to expect a bit more from Cullen, I have no major complaints, it’s more so just that I didn’t think anything about this stood out. It’s one of those comics/graphic novels that you read and it feels like you’ve read basically the same story like 27 times before.

A bit unoriginal, if you will.

The art wasn’t particularly my style either; so where normally the art might serve to redeem a mediocre storyline, this art sorta kinda just validated my feelings, of which the prevailing sentiment was UNDERWHELMED.

It was readable tho, it managed to hold my attention Nd keep it till the end, despite it’s glaring unoriginality, so for that I awarded it a generous 3 stars.

Wow. Wow. Wow.
I loved this book immensely. It hooked me right from the start with its artwork and where it was going and I finished it in one sitting.
This runs along the idea of surgery and what people will do for perfection, however, their version of perfection is warped and twisted. Vocal cords are removed, faces are twisted, and some people are left without the ability to walk.
Secret experiments are being run by the 'doctors' to achieve this goal of perfection in their art. We have our two leads, a detective who wants to protect and a doctor who wants to save her daughter's life. I wish we had more time to see their relationship with one another develop (as friends) but the story was so wild and kept me invested.
I think this was a really great way of entering the conversation about beauty standards and plastic surgery in an extreme way that didn't make it feel like we were being preached to, and the ending was perfect for the story.

Dark and weird, twisted and disturbing. This graphic novel is a brutal exploration of the underbelly of wellness culture. There is a lot of subtext to unpack. Fast paced and thought provoking. Great narrative art that propels the story and mirrors the horror of the events.

I was hooked right from the start.

Just a heads-up. There is a lot of blood and gore in this graphic novel, as well as potentially triggering topics: plastic surgery addiction, assault, self-harm, body mutilation, dismemberment, and death. I wont be surprised if this one actually gives me nightmares.

Invasive takes the very basic notion of a group of sadistic surgeons preying on those addicted to body modification and transforms it into a gory mystery/thriller. Our main characters, surgeon Carrie Reynolds and an ex-detective, join forces to avenge the lives of their loved ones which were ruined by back-alley surgeons.

My main criticism is that I wanted to know the ex-detective more and care about what happened to him prior to meeting Carrie again. With everything that happens, I would've liked to be closer to his character.

I liked the artwork. Both illustrators really collaborated well on conveying a specific aesthetic and style.

Invasive is a quick horror short which has a deeper message which will stick with you for a while.

Cullen Bunn is the writer of comic books such The Sixth Gun, Shadow Roads, The Damned, and Helheim for Oni Press. He has also written titles including Harrow County (Dark Horse), Uncanny X-Men, and Deadpool Kills the Marvel Universe(Marvel). Cullen claims to have worked as an alien autopsy specialist, rodeo clown, pro wrestling manager, and sasquatch wrangler. He has fought for his life against mountain lions and performed on stage as the world’s youngest hypnotist. Buy him a drink sometime and he'll tell you all about it. His newest graphic novel is Invasive, illustrated by Jesús Hervás and Federico Sabbatini.

Invasive follows the tale of Dr. Carrie Reynolds, who is a skilled surgeon. However, there is a new type of “hospital” in town, one that will perform the most horrible surgeries. Her daughter, Heather, is addicted to plastic surgery to the point that she is now comatose and hospitalized. She’s not the only one, as the police are currently investigating a series of murders and mutilations, all of which are linked to this unknown hospital and its doctors. Dr. Reynolds and the police pursue their leads to the end, discovering a cult of surgeons who believe they can remake the world, one incision at a time.

This is a violent and bloody graphic novel. It reads like a noir plot, with lots of intrigue and false leads, but the bulk of the book is based around the simple idea of addiction to surgery. These addicts are portrayed in ways meant to both shock and horrify the readers, drawing parallels between current addicts and the way they’re ignored and marginalized by society. The socio-political critique is thick in this book, and Bunn examines not just the medical ethics behind plastic surgery but the effects it has on patients, their ideas about themselves, their body images, etc.

This plot is evocatively illustrated by Jesús Hervás and Federico Sabbatini. The images are very stylized, with the scars and infections visible and on display. This is meant to be splatter or body horror, and lots of red ink was used to color these pages. But nothing is so over-the-top or bizarre as to be inconsistent or unreasonable, which is what makes this book so much more terrifying. There is nothing in this book that could not happen. There are no fantastic monsters or aliens, simply human beings caught up in their own egotistical madness, and the results of their insanity are gorgeously, but disturbingly, inked and painted for readers to thrill over.

Cullen Bunn is no stranger to inventive horror and graphic novels, so it should be no surprise that this novel is equally as impressive. The psychological horror of this book, rooted in the nature of addiction, is disturbing. The layers of body and splatter horror, expertly illustrated, simply add to the discomfort for the reader. Ultimately, this is disturbing graphic novel about surgery addiction, and horror readers will absolutely want to check this out immediately.

The blurb and cover art is much scarier than the comic itself. This collection is not bad but just a decent read . I like the premise of the story but in terms of execution well it really didn't click for me. I feel it's a bit rushed, too limited and the characters are not full highlighted on so there will be some chemistry between them and for the readers to care for them. I'm having a hard time getting into the characters and the story. And the bed scene...ugh...didn't help either.

The horror stuff are good and it did a bit help on the story. I feel the writer already gave a something to chew on on the early part of the comic that we know what will be the finale (at least). Nevertheless, the twist is in end is good but not that shocking for me.

The artwork is OK. I wish someone else did the rendering.

Invasive is probably the best horror comic I’ve read this year.

With its subject matter, part of which consists of crazy pseudo surgeons and people addicted to needless medical procedures just for the thrill of being operated on, it would have been very easy for this story to be one note and schlocky, leaning heavily on its premise and offering little else of value.

Invasive never veers into this pitfall however, and instead presents a compellingly original story with complex characters, stunningly rendered in beautiful line and color work. The result is a thoughtful tale and one I have no problem recommending to anyone with a reasonably strong stomach.

The plot, a lean and competent premise, is that a former detective and doctor team up to seek justice after the doctor’s daughter barely escapes the clutches of a mysterious group of murderous surgeons whose operations bring only mutilation and death to their unwilling patients. The daughter remains unresponsive in a comma and with no other leads detective and surgeon search for answers in support groups for people addicted to medical procedures and in back alley operating theaters headed by unscrupulous, partially trained doctors.

This story succeeds ably as a narrative and within its pages are stunning examples of gorgeous, if grotesque, artwork. The horror is definitely there, but it’s doled out with judicious restraint, making it all the more effective and shocking. This lesson is one many authors and especially creators of horror graphic novels, would do well to emulate, effective scares are often as brief as they are terrifying. The world Invasive creates is believable yet slightly askew, a shadowy, paranoid place that evokes nothing so much as an episode of the Twilight Zone written by Clive Barker.

If there isn’t more of this story in the works, then there certainly should be. Albeit, fans of a short, standalone tell won’t be dissatisfied in the least.

A real thrill ride that starts off as intriguing mystery, quickly moves into some great action, and ending on proper body horror. A fantastic read from start to finish.

The art style is polished, and the gloomy almost Noir aesthetic fits perfectly with the themes.

My only complaint is that it was over too quickly.

A solid 4/5

Book title: Invasive #1 by Cullen Bunn

Rating: 💀💀💀💀

Opinion: Thank you @netgalley and @onipress for the ARC of this really cool read! This is my first time rating a comic but I thoroughly, thoroughly enjoyed it!
In a world full of nips and tucks, this is original nightmare fuel. There is definitely no lack of gore throughout the entirety of Invasive. I can’t wait to get my heads on the upcoming issues to find out how this twisted story plays out! 🔪🥼🩸

This quick read, transported me right back to 2008 when I watched “Repo: The Genetic Opera” for the first time. IYKYK and if you don’t know, you need to do a quick google search and watch immediately. Thank me later.

Summary: This story follows Dr. Carrie Reynolds whose daughter suffered from a very traumatic incident while attempting to overcome plastic surgery addiction. Slowly but surely, more and more individuals are being found missing vital pieces of their bodies throughout the city. It appears a new team of underground surgeons has set their sites on unsuspecting victims and will stop at nothing to get their gore fix.

Side note: The cover C illustration is awesome (swipe to third pic to see it)!

Cullen Bunn's Invasive is a lightweight but enjoyable work of body horror revolving around illicit surgeries and grisly deaths. A former cop, Vic, continues the investigation that cost him his career, seeking to uncover the culprits behind the brutal disfigurement of a young boy. He's joined by Carrie, a doctor and mother of another victim who had her vocal cords removed and lays comatose in the hospital.

Bunn's scripting is pretty straight forward and, at only four issues, makes for an incredibly fast-paced read. By the end of the second issue, Vic and Carrie have already uncovered there whereabouts of the gas masked, leather frocked murdersurgeons haunting the back alleys of the city, putting them on a collision course with the mastermind behind the slayings.

Art duties are split between Jesús Hervás and Federico Sabbatini, with Hervás illustrating the first two issues and Sabbatini closing out the series in issues three and four. Hervás's style is a bit grittier and rougher compared to Sabbatini's cleaner, more defined pencils. The two complement each other well here, maintaining a fairly consistent, and consistently dark, visual through-line that brings a suitably bleak and oppressive atmosphere to Bunn's scripts.

Invasive is showcase for style over substance, evoking a very particular mood reminiscent of David Fincher's serial killer thriller Seven, with a strong emphasis on bodily deformations, but little in the way of depth or compellingly memorable motivations.

This one was quite terrifying, but really interesting. It's pretty dark and you really should have the stomach for that and be in the mood to read something that will make you question a few things.

Invasive is an ok horror story. The idea of people being kidnapped and going through horrible surgeries performed by a mad doctor is good. The art is nice, there's a lot of gore for those who enjoy it. However, there isn't a lot of depth. The characters are underdeveloped. We don't know much about their lives and how they ended up in that situation, and though it's not always necessary, more background would have been nice. The pacing didn't need to be so fast, more pages could have improved the story. However, what really annoyed me was the ending. I was going to give this 4 stars up until the end. But the final pages were confusing and didn't make sense. I don't know if I'm the problem, but I didn't really understand that ending. So I took one star from my final rating because I of that.

I'm 100% a Cullen Bunn fan. The story was great. The entire story gave me Repo! The Genetic Opera vibes - folks addicted to surgery that will do anything to get it? Folks that let elective cosmetic procedures completely destroy their outward appearance? A journey through to the grotesque? Yes, please! The art work was great as well. Good stuff all around.

A great new addition to horror comics! Medical horror is such a fun subset of body horror and I can't think of many comics that explore it. The horror is delightfully grotesque and I love the art style used here. The color red pops so much and I love how it was used for the blood and the eyes of the suits. It feels like a companion to the movie "American Mary" and it's such a fun time. Definitely would reccomend.